Crime

Robert Durst will finally stand trial for allegedly murdering his wife, Kathie Durst, in 1982 -- that is, if he survives COVID-19 and his already incredibly frail condition.

A grand jury in NY state heard testimony last week, and the murder charge was filed Tuesday in Westchester County. The D.A.'s Office is confirming the charges were filed, but won't comment any further.

It's unclear when he would stand trial, but the former real estate tycoon -- featured in the HBO documentary, "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst" -- is already at death's door. As you know, an L.A. jury convicted Durst last week for the murder of Susan Berman, and sentenced him to life in prison.

Two days later, 78-year-old Durst was placed on a ventilator after contracting the coronavirus.

Remember, Durst seemingly confessed on an open mic while recording an interview for 'The Jinx' ... saying, "What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course."

The hunt for Gabby Petito's fiance, Brian Laundrie, is officially over ... the FBI says dental records prove the remains found on a Florida hiking trail match those of the 23-year-old.

Brian's remains were found Wednesday at the Carlton Reserve in North Port, FL ... only hours after the FBI uncovered some of Brian's belongings during an initial search at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park.

The Laundrie family attorney tells TMZ, "Chris and Roberta Laundrie have been informed that the remains found yesterday in the reserve are indeed Brian’s. We have no further comment at this time and we ask that you respect the Laundrie’s privacy at this time."

As we reported ... Brian's parents led the FBI to the previously unexplored trail, where the feds found some articles of clothing and a backpack they believed might belong to Brian. The Medical Examiner went to the location, as well as the Pasco County Sheriff's Office's Human Remains Detection Team and a K-9.

The news comes about a month after authorities said the body they found in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park was indeed Gabby's body. The Teton County Coroner conducted an autopsy and ruled her death a homicide, with authorities saying she was strangled to death.

As you know by now ... Laundrie went on the run and had so far eluded the FBI and Dog the Bounty Hunter during a nationwide manhunt.

The Petito case, of course, gained national attention after Brian returned to his Florida home without Gabby on September 1 ... despite the fact they had taken a cross-country trip together and documented the trip on social media.

Adding fuel to the fire ... there had also been an alleged domestic disturbance while on the road in Utah and a public blowout in Wyoming that got so bad they were booted from a restaurant.

Gabby's parents said they had not heard from her since August 25 and they reported her missing on Sept. 11. Laundrie was named a person of interest just 4 days later but then came a huge twist -- he did not cooperate with authorities and his family reported him missing on Sept. 17 ... adding that they had not seen him in days.

Gabby's family called for Laundrie to turn himself in during an emotional news conference in her home state of NY.

Along the way, there were tons of alleged Brian sightings ... all over Florida and even as far as Canada. Someone alerted authorities they spotted a man on their trail camera that fit Brian's description ... albeit around 450 miles away from his North Port home -- which would be quite a journey on foot over 4 days.

The Okaloosa Co. Sheriff later said they searched the area where the image was taken but didn't find anything, or anyone, of interest. The FBI also paid Laundrie's parent's home a visit to collect some of his items for DNA matching.

Then there was this ... Dog joined the manhunt too, and he even alerted cops about a possible lead.

Brian Laundrie's parents are "heartbroken" after their family attorney says remains found off a Florida trail almost certainly belong to their son.

Steven Bertolino, who has repped the Laundrie family for weeks now, told CNN's Chris Cuomo Wednesday, "the probability is strong, that it is Brian's remains" found by the FBI.

Bertolino says Laundrie's parents contacted authorities Tuesday night to let them know they wanted to search the trail Wednesday, and the finding of his belongings was a total coincidence.

The FBI said in a press conference Wednesday that the area where Brian's backpack and notebook were found near what appeared to be human remains was previously under water. Authorities have not yet identified the remains, and say investigative teams will be in the area for several days gathering evidence.

Bertolino told Cuomo, "It's quite sad, you can imagine as a parent, finding your son's belonging alongside from the remains. That's got to be heartbreaking. And I can tell you that they are heartbroken."

Bertolino says Laundrie's dad, Chris, first found a white bag in the woods about 20 feet off the trail ... and shortly after, law enforcement discovered Brian's backpack.

It all raises the question ... how did Laundrie's dad zero in on something the FBI couldn't find for more than a month?

Brian Laundrie's family may have actually done something helpful in the ongoing search for their son -- leading the FBI to a new trail he frequented ... which, go figure, led to his stuff being found. And ... we've confirmed the Medical Examiner is on the way to the location.

The Laundrie family attorney, Steven Bertolino, tells TMZ ... Brian's parents, Chris and Roberta, went to Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, FL Wednesday morning to look for him -- apparently, a new area that hadn't been explored.

We're told the family told authorities about their intentions, and sure enough ... the FBI and North Port police showed up as well bright and early. Bertolino says after a brief search off a trail Brian was known to have hiked ... some evidence was discovered that he'd been there.

Unclear what exactly the FBI found -- but we're told a handful of belongings, including some articles of clothing, the feds believe might belong to Brian. There's even video of them seemingly breaking this news to his parents -- this as they and bystanders looked on.

Now, Bertolino says the powers that be will focus their efforts on this location for a more thorough investigation.

It's a stunning development -- but one that surely raises an eyebrow at the Laundrie family. If this was a place they believed Brian might be or might have been since vanishing ... why hadn't they said anything until now -- and how is it that on the day they decide to go looking here, they actually find something???

It's a bizarre set of circumstances, and we're sure the feds will ask these hard questions -- but, for now, their top priority is bringing this guy in alive ... and getting to the bottom of what he knows about Gabby Petito.

Dog the Bounty Hunter has vacated the state of Florida amid his search for Brian Laundrie -- but that doesn't mean the guy's throwing in the towel ... quite the opposite, in fact.

Sources close to Duane Chapman tell TMZ ... he's back in Colorado -- where he normally lives -- and has plans to meet with his doctor over his recent ankle injury ... which he suffered while on the hunt for the elusive Laundrie.

He might be down and on the mend at the moment, but that doesn't mean Dog is out of the fight -- we're told he still has reason to believe BL is alive ... and will continue filtering through tips.

Speaking of those ... we're told that since he's been back in the Rockies, Dog's received upwards of 4,000 possible leads -- through which he's sifting for one that might be legit. As you can imagine, it's a daunting task -- but DTBH is up for it.

Consider this as well ... Dog was roughing it in the Sunshine State -- which our sources say took a toll on him. The guy was seen wading through marshy swamps in the area -- but even beyond that ... we're told he'd been putting in 20-hour days, and sustained injuries that he hasn't really made public ... leaving him cut up and bloodied.

Now, as to whether Dog will return to Florida once he's back to 100% ... we're told he absolutely will. Our sources say Dog is still invested in the case, and will get back into the field soon.

Cops were called to the scene where an abandoned bike was found just a few miles from where surveillance video was shot of a man who resembles Brian Laundrie ... TMZ has learned.

A used car sales manager named Jon in Hernando, FL tells us he discovered the bike near his shop -- he believes it was left there either Friday night or Saturday morning. Jon called the cops, who came to the scene and fingerprinted the bike Tuesday.

Jon says officers only spent about 15 minutes on scene, but told him Laundrie tips come in quite frequently to their department ... and most are dead ends.

The location of the bike is interesting ... considering we obtained a surveillance video shot in the area last week of a man who resembled Laundrie, riding a bike on a deserted road surrounded by heavy brush. In the video ... you see the man struggle to pedal on the sandy road, wearing a very large backpack. The area where the man was riding is 3 hours from the home of Laundrie's parents.

We should say ... the design of the two bikes appears to be different, but nonetheless, the abandoned bike was suspicious enough for cops to come out.

Laundrie has been on the run for more than a month now, and it's widely believed he had something to do with the murder of his fiancee, Gabby Petitio. Authorities say Petito was strangled to death, and her body was left in the wilderness for weeks before being discovered.

Another shooting went down Tuesday night in Bev Hills -- the latest one to hit the ritzy town this year ... which begs a serious question about violent crime in the 90210.

Beverly Hills PD says it responded to reports of a shooting late Tuesday night, which went down near Italian restaurant Via Alloro ... and left one victim with a gunshot wound to the leg. Cops say the shooting was the result of an attempted armed robbery.

It sounds like the perp(s) left empty-handed and the police are on the hunt ... but remember, something very similar happened a few short months ago at nearby celeb hot spot Il Pastaio, where a handful of men pulled off something similar -- in broad daylight, no less.

We broke the story ... cops ended up arresting 3 alleged gang members in May, whom they say had the audacity to pull an armed robbery in March, in pursuit of a $500k Richard Mille watch a man was wearing -- which they successfully stole, while leaving a woman shot in the leg as they fled. Here, too, somebody was left with a bullet in their lower half.

This is NOT a new phenomenon, BTW -- Bev Hills has long been a place where criminals have tried stealing jewelry off of people's bodies -- especially pricey Rolex watches, and other valuables -- but it now seems to be spinning into a violent endeavor, with guns blazing.

We looked into the crime stats too over the past couple years -- and sure enough, property crime in Beverly Hills is through the roof compared to the rest of L.A. and the rest of the country -- up 108% compared to the national average as recently as 2020, which is nuts.

Prosecutors in the YNW Melly double murder case could help prove their case against the rapper -- that is, if they can get their hands on his saliva and match it to DNA at the scene.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, prosecutors are asking a Broward County judge to force Melly to submit an oral swab ... because they want to check if his C's, A's, G's and T's match up to DNA samples they found on a key piece of evidence collected during the investigation.

That evidence is a yellow jacket ... which prosecutors say already has DNA that matches Anthony Williams, one of the 2 people killed in the shooting.

Prosecutors claim there are 3 other potential DNA profiles on that jacket ... and seeing as how Melly is one of the people charged with the murders -- prosecutors wanna see if his DNA is also on the jacket.

As we reported, prosecutors allege Melly and his pal, Cortlen Henry, gunned down their buddies, Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr., and then hatched an elaborate plan to make it seem the men had died in a drive-by.

Adrian Holmes -- the guy playing Uncle Phil in the new 'Fresh Prince' reboot -- was involved in a car accident that resulted in fatal injuries for a man who was laying in the middle of the freeway.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Holmes was traveling southbound Monday on the 110 freeway just north of Sunset Boulevard in downtown L.A. -- when, at around 7:35 PM, we're told he struck an unidentified man who was lying down in his lane.

Our sources say Holmes was unable to avoid hitting the man ... and neither could the person driving right behind him -- who also made contact with the individual ... whose body was pushed into the adjacent lane ... and was hit by a 3rd car. For those outside L.A., the 110 is a very busy freeway.

The John Doe suffered fatal injuries, and cops are investigating what may have led to him being out there in the first place.

For now, our sources say ... drugs and alcohol are not believed to have been a factor for all the drivers involved -- unclear if that applies to the victim, though.

Like we said, Holmes is playing the Fresh Prince's famed uncle from the original sitcom -- only this time, there's no Will ... because the reimagined version of 'FP' is a drama, with all new actors.

Brian Laundrie might have been pedaling along a country road -- purposely out of public view -- on a rickety old bike ... that is, if you buy what someone says they see in this video.

Check out this clip, obtained by TMZ, which one witness tells us was shot from a surveillance camera on the outskirts of his property on October 9 in Dunnellon, FL -- a tiny town, about three hours north of Laundrie's hometown of North Port, where his family resides.

We're told there are several acres of rural land behind this guy's property, which is apparently where this footage was taken ... along what we're told is a rugged sugar sand path that hardly anyone ever ventures down ... on foot or anything else.

Weirdly enough, this unidentified guy was cruising down the trail on a bicycle ... and having a difficult time at it, as you can see. He's riding with an oversized backpack on, and heavy clothing ... and in the homeowner's eyes, was trying to lay low.

Add on the fact this mystery man -- at least at first glance -- appears to bear a passing resemblance to Laundrie in the face ... and we might have a legit sighting on our hands.

We're told this video was submitted to the FBI for review, as the property owner felt it was enough of a match to flag it. Then again ... we've seen a lot of these that turn out to be red herrings, and some folks have even had run-ins with the law over a mistaken identity.

Aaron Carter can finally close the book on his DUI case from 4 years ago in Georgia -- and he's gotta be pretty happy, because he's walking away without doing a day in jail.

A court clerk from Habersham County tells TMZ ... Aaron struck a deal with prosecutors, agreeing to plea no contest to reckless driving for the 2017 stop where he refused to submit to a breathalyzer test. The DUI charge goes away.

We're told Aaron will be placed on 12 months of probation, while also having to complete 40 hours of community service and take some DUI risk reduction classes ... plus, shell out around $1,500 in court fees and fines. AC will also be subjected to a drug and alcohol evaluation, and has to comply with whatever other treatment is seen as appropriate.

Assuming all goes well during his probation, he won't have to spend any time behind bars -- which was technically on the table as a possibility when he got arrested.

You'll recall ... Aaron got pulled over in Habersham while cruising with his then-girlfriend, Madison Parker, but declined to submit to the breathalyzer when cops suspected he was under the influence.

Now, the case is officially over and done with.

So, what's next for Carter? He previously told TMZ Sports he's eyeing another celeb boxing match after losing his first one to Lamar Odom.

Robert Durst is starting out his life imprisonment on a hospital bed -- the guy has COVID-19, and is hooked up to a machine to help him survive ... so says his lawyer.

Attorney Dick DeGuerin told several media outlets Saturday that Durst has been placed on a ventilator over the past couple days after contracting the virus -- but didn't have much of an update beyond that, adding the legal team hadn't heard from doctors yet.

He did say that Durst looked terrible on Thursday -- when he was sentenced to life in prison after recently being found guilty for murder -- noting it was the "worst I've ever seen him." DeGuerin added Durst was having difficulty breathing and speaking that day.

Durst sat quiet and still during his sentencing hearing, looking incredibly frail in a wheelchair ... while wearing a face mask. It's unclear if he'd tested positive before or after the hearing.

As we reported ... Durst's fate is to live out his remaining years behind bars, without the possibility of parole. He was found guilty of murdering his close friend, Susan Berman, back in 2000. While he was never charged for the crime, many believe she was set to come forward with info linking Durst to the disappearance of his wife, Kathy, whom vanished in the '80s.

Durst's story was covered extensively in the HBO docuseries 'The Jinx' during which he's believed to have confessed to killing both Kathy and Susan after being heard on a hot mic.

Jussie Smollett is going to have to face the music after claiming he was attacked by racist, homophobic MAGA supporters -- and the City of Chicago's claim he made it all up.

The former "Empire" actor is heading to trial next month -- this after a Cook County judge shot down JS's final attempt to have the criminal case against him tossed ... setting the stage for Jussie to face a jury of his peers over the 2019 incident.

Smollett's attorney tried convincing the court that his client's rights were being violated, seeing how the guy had already forfeited his $10,000 bond and done community service ... which served as the terms he struck with Cook County prosecutors to have the charges dismissed.

Per reports, the attorney noted Smollett had held up his end of the bargain, saying ... "A deal is a deal. That's ancient principle." Not so, according to the judge -- who noted a new set of circumstances arose when a special prosecutor reopened the case ... and charged Jussie anew.

Because of that, the judge said he wouldn't tamper with the new case. As you know, Jussie faces charges of disorderly conduct for allegedly lying in the police reports about what happened to him.

As we've reported ... Jussie claimed he was jumped by two white males wearing red MAGA hats, who hurled racist and homophobic epithets at him ... poured bleach on him ... and then threw a noose around his neck. Jussie kept that noose on until cops arrived and got his story -- an interaction that their body cameras captured upon entering his Chicago apartment.

As the initial investigation unfolded, police say they found that his so-called attackers weren't white at all -- they were two Black men, the Osundairo brothers, whom knew Jussie well from working on "Empire" ... and who confessed to staging the whole thing at Jussie's behest.

There's footage of the guys buying the supplies they used that night ... and even walking past Jussie at one point on the streets. The brothers claim Jussie paid them to set up the entire attack ... something he's denied entirely at every turn, defiant to prove his innocence.

A high school football game abruptly ended Friday night after gunfire erupted and 4 people were shot.

Players from Williamson High School were on the field against rival Vigor High School at the Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama, when gunfire rang through the stadium, just before 10 PM.

Two of the 4 people shot were minors ... one person is in critical condition.

It's unclear where the shots came from, but it appears the shooter was not on the field or in the stands. As you see from the video, the players dropped to the ground and people in the stands fled ... leaving the stadium in a panic.

The shooter was not apprehended and it's unclear if police have any leads. A witness told cops 2 people and possibly more fled the stadium in a white sedan after the shooting, but it's unclear if they had anything to do with the shooting.

Gabby Petito's grieving parents paid a visit to a place their daughter visited shortly before she was murdered.

Joseph Petito posted a photo of Jenny Lake in Wyoming. The scenery is stunning ... with snowcapped mountains lining the area around a beautiful lake in Grand Teton National Park.

"I now know why you came here," Joseph wrote on Twitter. "#gabbypetito has a beautiful view from now on. Love you, and miss you."

The lake is near where Gabby's body was found. As we reported, the Teton County Coroner concluded Gabby died from manual strangulation sometime around the end of August.

Gabby's parents made the trip to recover her remains, which have been cremated. They're coming back to New York this weekend with the urn.

Brian Laundrie has still not been named a suspect in Gabby's death, although that seems to be more for strategic reasons. He is wanted for fraud, which would allow authorities to arrest him.  He's not been seen for a month, and the area authorities have been searching has not produced a single shred of evidence.

Celebrity dermatologist Dr. Alex Khadavi just got slapped with a restraining order in the latest fallout from his homophobic rant caught on video ... he's gotta stay away from the people who accused him of making death threats.

According to new legal docs ... the gay married couple who claim they were on the receiving end of Khadavi's threatening rant is getting court-ordered protection.

The docs, obtained by TMZ, show that Khadavi is banned from harassing, intimidating, attacking, striking, stalking, threatening, assaulting, hitting, abusing, destroying personal property or disturbing the peace of the couple, who live in his building.

Khadavi, whose celeb clients have included Lance Bass and Scott Disick, has also been ordered to stay at least 100 yards away from them anywhere outside of the West Hollywood condo building where they all live.

TMZ broke the story ... Khadavi's rant on July 7 was captured on video, which appears to show him approaching the front desk concierge in a hostile manner, talking smack about people who live in the building, referring to them with the homophobic f-word, and threatening to "blow their f***ing heads off."

The restraining order will be in place for the next 3 years, ending in October 2024.